The AFSL Dating Game

The AFSL Dating Game

An informative article recently featured in the Professional Planner online publication, talks about the industry shake up in June where the authorised representatives of Dover Financial Advisers were given less than a month to find a new Australian Financial Services licensee (AFSL).

Futuro Financial Services managing director Paul Kelly says the licensee has received about 60 approaches “from various parties” in the wake of the Dover collapse. Kelly says advisers must understand that choosing a new licensee cannot be a one-dimensional decision.

“It’s not just going to be about the service offering, it is going to be around some of the cultural aspects,” he says. “I think a lot of that is lost at the moment.

“I feel for these people. They’ve got a short time period to try to find the home that suits them best – how many licensees are they going to pick up the phone to? Five? Six?

“If you’re doing it in a purposeful and respectful fashion, you’re going to want to talk to these people for 20 minutes or half an hour each. That’s a fair chunk of your day gone, just chatting on the phone. And it’s the same for them – if they’re not spending half an hour on the phone initially, just working through the things they want to find out about, that might say something as well.”

Kelly says any adviser looking for a new licensee must prepare really well, as must a licensee before taking them on.

“The best ones we’ve seen when we’re talking to them are the ones that have come with a set of questions,” he says.